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MW 24 June 2015

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WWW.MALTATODAY.COM.MT WEDNESDAY EDITION WEDNESDAY • 24 June 2015 • issue 421 • published every wednesday and sunday €1.00 EDITORIAL PAGE 10 Newspaper post CONTINUES ON PAGE 3 Ex-police inspector was prosecutor in smart meters' bribery Police inspector who was medically discharged from corps had led prosecutions on smart meter bribery, and then kicked upstairs to Enemalta audit division on a €60,000 salary MATTHEW VELLA A former police inspector who got transferred to a €60,000 posting at Enemalta plc, after being medically 'boarded out' of his original job, had been previously responsible for prosecuting people charged with the bribery of Enemalta employees to hack into their smart meters. Daniel Zammit, the son of former acting police commissioner Ray Zammit, had his job as a consult- ant to Enemalta's internal audit section terminated on Monday evening at the request of energy minister Konrad Mizzi. The inspector's new posting, con- troversially awarded four days after being medically screened to be dis- charged from the police corps, was the subject of a PQ by shadow jus- tice minister Jason Azzopardi. On the other hand, an Enemalta source told MaltaToday that Zam- mit's posting had been welcomed inside the audit division, which has played a central role in uncovering the smart meter hacking scam, be- cause it had already requested the skills of an interrogating officer. But the controversial manner in which Zammit was appointed to the post had now led to its termi- nation. Only 25 people were charged for bribing the Enemalta technicians at the heart of the scam to hack smart meters so that these would under- register energy consumption. The government originally claimed that hundreds of clients had had their smart meters tam- pered with, and to facilitate their regularisation had granted them in February 2014 a six-week deadline to regularise their position by pay- ing a penalty and their unpaid en- ergy bills, or face court action. Mizzi had claimed close to 1,000 smart meters had been tampered with. Azzopardi asked Home Affairs Minister Carmelo Abela for his view on how the posting had been granted, given that it did not ap- pear that his medical condition was so serious. TIM DIACONO EUROVISION singer William Mangion's €19,582 public contract has been extended for another year, and he is now responsible for "pro- viding support" in the organisation of certain events. Mangion's two-year quest to lo- cate a rehearsal space for bands came to an end in February, as the government announced its plans to incorporate such a rehearsal space within a newly set-up 'Carnival Vil- lage' in Marsa. However, MaltaToday can now reveal that the singer's contract has indeed been extended for at least another year, only with a fresh set of duties. The Ministry for Justice and Cul- ture told MaltaToday that Man- gion's duties are threefold. He must firstly provide consultation and assistance for the "preparation and planning of the establishment, or- ganisation and running of the iden- tified band rehearsal space" within the Cultural Village. He is now also responsible for "providing logistic and operational support as required" for the hold- ing of events, particularly festivals, organised by Arts Council Malta, as well as any other "ad hoc assign- ments" given to him by his superi- ors at the national arts body. Moreover, he must provide nec- essary support "on a need basis" for the holding of events and pres- entations and presentations at the Pjazza Teatru Rjal in Valletta. Mangion's annual salary remains at €19,582, excluding VAT, and he has an annual mobile allowance of €650. Mangion, most famous for finish- ing 8th at the Eurovision Song Con- test with his song 'This Time', was made 'coordinator for the promo- tion of local bands' in 2013, shortly after Labour's election victory. The position was an entirely new one, for which the government did not issue any formal call. William Mangion Former Police Inspector Daniel Zammit Singer's €20,000 contract extended by a year to 'provide support for festivals and events'

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